Choices
by hummerhouse
Summary: All of our preferences can easily get along, just take your pick. Pairings: Don/April, Casey/April, Casey/Don, Casey/April/Don One shot


Choices

Option 1 Apritello

April clung to Donatello's shell, her legs wrapped tightly around his waist, though she grimaced every now and then when the edges of his carapace dug into her thighs. He climbed higher, moving much faster than she could have if she'd even been able to scale a thirty-story building in the first place.

Earlier when she'd wistfully sighed and said how much she'd like to see the fireworks display over the Hudson River, Don had asked her why she didn't go. April had told him of her disappointment in the past; how the traffic was so bad that she couldn't get close enough for a good view.

Of course in Donnie fashion he'd come up with a solution and she'd enthusiastically agreed. Now with the wind whipping around her and the ground so very far away, April was re-thinking this plan.

She didn't say anything though, instead closing her eyes and strengthening her grip. Ascending to the top of a building of this height from the outside of it was child's play to the tall ninja turtle and April knew she was safe. That didn't make it any less scary.

They reached the roof just as the first burst of color painted the dark sky with glittering gold dots. This was followed quickly by another that was red, and then a green salvo that released not one, but two sprays of brilliance for their viewing pleasure.

Don took her hand and led her to the edge of the roof, which afforded April an unobstructed view of the fireworks show. Her gaze was transfixed by the intensity of the multi-colored lights; almost awestruck in fact at the opportunity to view them from such an advantageous height.

The only disadvantage proved to be the wind. It rushed around her frame, pushing at her enough to make April unsteady on her feet. The tall turtle at her side seemed completely unaffected by the bullying gale so April wrapped her hands tightly around one of Don's arms and was instantly comforted by how safe that made her feel.

A cluster of multi-colored fireworks exploded high above them, spreading out in a wide pattern and almost seeming to surround the pair. Just as it began to fade, another vivid starburst painted the sky a rich tapestry of purple.

As April stared in fascination at the twinkling show, she murmured, "It's so pretty."

Donatello looked at the girl beside him, a gentle smile on his face. "It's purple."

April glanced up at him, her eyes soft. "I like purple."

Another flash mushroomed before them and drew April's attention. Don's however remained focused on the girl standing next to him.

After a few minutes the corners of April's mouth twitched in amusement. She didn't turn her head as she said, "You're not watching the light show."

Donnie's voice was low and filled with awe as he replied, "Yes I am. I'm watching the one in your eyes."

This time April's lips curved into a genuine smile as she looked at him. "Oh, can you see them from way up there?" she asked teasingly.

Don swallowed, took a deep breath, and said, "Be nice if they were closer."

There was a wistful tone in his voice and April knew how much bravery he'd had to summon up to say those words. A warm glow settled in her chest as she thought of the stalwart companion who stood by her side in the best and worst of times, never faltering in his devotion.

April turned to him, one hand remaining on his arm while she placed the other against his chest. Pressing close to Don, she asked, "Is this better?"

His eyes glued to hers, Don said, "Closer."

Rising up on her toes brought April's face very near the turtle's. "Maybe you should come closer to me now," she suggested in a breathy voice.

"Okay," Don said, leaning down until his mouth was just above her enticing full lips. "How's this?"

April's hand slid up from Don's chest and over his collar bone, her fingers curling over the solid muscle close to his neck. "A little closer," she whispered encouragingly.

Don trembled slightly as he touched his lips to hers. His hands moved to her waist, his hold light yet firm, and she pressed against him. Their mouths did not move as the pair simply explored the feeling of their lips melding together.

After a moment, April tipped her head back and broke the kiss, but she moved away from him no more than a fraction of an inch.

With a slight smile, April said, "I think the wind is picking up."

As she spoke against Don's mouth, April curved both arms around his neck. Don moved his as well, circling her waist and pulling April tightly against him.

"Don't worry, I won't let you fall," Don murmured, his brown eyes shining.

April sighed, her lips brushing his as she said, "Too late."

"My April," Don said before kissing her again, this time deeply and thoroughly.

Option 2 Capril

April rested her elbows on the wall surrounding the ice rink and watched as Casey shot one puck after the other into the goal on the opposite end of the rink. It struck her how similar he was to her friends the turtles; they practiced their ninjitsu tirelessly and Casey worked on his hockey techniques every chance he got.

It was that devotion to Casey's sport of choice that had brought about their first meeting. He needed help with Trigonometry in order to keep his spot on the hockey team, and she needed something to take her mind off the turtles.

As April smiled at the memory, Casey spun in her direction and skated over to where she stood. When he rested one arm on the wall next to her, offering her a cocky grin, April asked, "Did you invite me here to watch you practice?"

"The last time you showed up here you brought some guys for me to practice against," Casey answered, his tone self-confident.

April arched an eyebrow at him. "I hope you weren't counting on that today."

"Nah, I had something else in mind," Casey told her, leaning his stick against the wall before stepping through the opening.

As he walked past her, April turned to see what he was up to. Casey stopped near one of the team benches and reached under it.

"What are you doing?" April asked.

Casey came up with a pair of ice skates in his hand. "I'm pretty good at eyeballing stuff so these should fit."

"And why would I want to put them on?" April asked, even as she followed his signal to sit down on the bench.

"Because I'm gonna teach you how to skate," Casey said, kneeling next to her. He slipped the shoes off of her feet and then helped her into the ice skates.

"Okay, that sounds like fun," April said, enjoying the feeling of Casey pulling the ties tight on her skates and then holding her leg to test the fit.

Standing up, Casey held his hand out to her and April took it, allowing Casey to help her to her feet. He held on as she took small tentative steps towards the rink and then shifted his grip to her upper arm as she moved onto the ice.

Gliding around to face her, Casey placed both hands on her biceps and she gripped his elbows, looking into his eyes for guidance.

"Just hold on to me and we'll go slowly until you get a feel for it," Casey said. "Concentrate on your balance for now, and then I'll show you how to accelerate and stop."

April nodded and then focused on the feeling of the thin blade attached to her feet and the way it slid across the ice. Sometimes her feet seemed to want to go in separate directions or to drift in towards each other.

Casey led her around the rink three times, each time a bit faster. April was impressed with how well he skated backwards, he seemed to know exactly where the wall was without having to look.

Finally April thought she had the hang of it, at least enough to keep her feet under her. "Let me try," she requested.

They let go of each other simultaneously and then Casey slid back a little ways. At first April didn't move, wanting to feel comfortable standing on the ice without any support.

"Bend your knees a little," Casey instructed. "Don't stiffen up, you gotta stay loose and relaxed 'cause that's better for your balance. Go ahead and put your arms out like you're walking on a tight rope."

April did as he directed, careful of her movements for fear she'd jerk herself off her feet.

"Good," Casey said. "Now lean forward just a little and take a step. Make sure you put the blade down level on the ice, don't put the tip down first."

"Got it," April said. Very carefully she lifted one foot and stepped forward.

She started to slide and repeated the maneuver with the other foot, gliding forward easily. Smiling, April took another step, starting to feel confident with her balance.

And then her skates decided to go somewhere else. With a shout, April pinwheeled her arms to no avail and started to fall.

Suddenly Casey was there, catching her in his arms before she could hit the ice. April grabbed at his shoulders and then wrapped her arms around them as she pressed into his hold, her heart beating fast.

April took a deep breath to steady herself and looked up into Casey's eyes. He still wore that slightly cocky smile of his and April had a fleeting thought that his wanting to teach her to skate wasn't altogether altruistic.

Before she could think of something to say, his head lowered and his lips touched hers. It felt so absolutely natural that April returned the kiss, completely forgetting that she was standing on cold ice without a coat.

When their mouths separated, Casey's dark eyes were shining. "It looks like you need more practice," he told her.

April saw that the grin hadn't left his face and answered it with a sly smile of her own as she asked, "Are we still talking about skating?"

Option 3 Jonatello (aka Castello)

Donatello walked through the dark sewers, a canister of ooze held tightly in his hands. Casey Jones accompanied him, keeping pace with the long legged turtle.

The boy was excited and talking a mile a minute. Though Don behaved as though Casey's antics left him unimpressed, he was actually quite amused and happy for the teen's company.

"I knew we could beat them to it," Casey crowed, his face alight with glee.

Don couldn't help but grin, feeling quite proud of himself. Instead of following up Casey's statement though, he instead asked, "So why didn't you want to team up with Raph on this?"

Casey glanced at him and shrugged. "'Cause sometimes Raph pulls this 'I'm a ninja and I'm better than you' stuff. I figured I'd show him by going hunting for canisters with the brains of the outfit."

"And then you stuck him with Mikey," Don said.

They both started laughing as they remembered the look on Raph's face and then Don loosened his grip on the canister so he could bump fists with Casey.

"You're kinda cool, Donnie. I like hanging with you," Casey said out of the blue. "April's probably trying to get Leo to teach her some ninja shadow stuff and I'll bet Mikey and Raph are going around in circles. You're like me, you just want to get the job done."

Don snorted with amusement and said, "I never thought I'd hear you say we have anything in common."

Casey stopped abruptly and turned to face Don, who also came to a halt, brow furrowed. "Except our gap teeth, right?" Casey asked.

The puzzled look on Don's face faded. "Oh yeah, right," he said, chuckling.

Casey was looking at him oddly, making no move to start walking again. Don was about to go ahead and continue on when Casey asked, "You got a tight grip on that canister?"

Once more Don appeared bewildered by Casey's behavior. "Yes. Why?" he asked.

Rather than answer, Casey stepped closer to him, coming clean into Don's personal space. "You sure?"

Don had both hands wrapped around the canister and could not understand what had Casey so concerned. "Of course I am," Don said, looking at the boy suspiciously. "You aren't about to do something crazy, are you?"

Casey's expression was enigmatic as he said, "Maybe, but at least it's not dangerous."

Before Don could respond to that, Casey tipped forward and planted a kiss squarely on the young turtle's lips. Completely astonished, Don lost his hold on the canister of ooze.

"Look out . . . ." Don shouted against Casey's mouth.

Rather than the cry of dismay Don expected, all he heard was Casey start to snicker. There was no sound of breaking glass and when Don glanced down, he saw that Casey had caught the canister.

"What . . . why . . . .?" Don stuttered, too astonished at Casey's action to form a sentence.

"Well, maybe it was a _little_ dangerous," Casey acknowledged with a grin. "So much for your tight grip."

"Don't ever surprise me like that again," Don said hotly. "That might have broken and splattered both of us."

"Hey, if some of it got on me would I have become part turtle?" Casey asked mischievously. "You know, 'cause I was kissing you?"

Don tried and failed to look stern. "Let's not find out, I like you the way you are."

Casey's grin grew wider. "Ha! You just admitted that you like me."

Spluttering, Don said, "You're twisting my words." He quickly snatched the canister from Casey's hands, feeling his cheeks grow warm as he tried to avoid looking at the boy.

Stretching his hands out for the turtle, Casey got a solid grip on the edges of Don's shell, drawing him as close as he could considering the canister was wedged between them. "How about you reach behind me and put that canister in my bag for safe keeping?" Casey suggested throatily.

A tingling sensation caressed Don's spine at the way Casey said those words. Bringing his eyes up to the boys, Don hesitated for only a second before lifting his arms over Casey's shoulders and carefully depositing the canister into the small golf bag slung across the teen's back.

As soon as the canister was no longer between them, Casey drew Don nearer, until their chests were flush up against each other's. Unsure as to where he should put his hands, Don curved them over Casey's shoulders.

Again Casey didn't ask to kiss him, but went ahead and did it. Don found that he didn't mind; he'd spent too much time feeling awkward around his human friends and it was nice to have Casey take the lead.

When they finally parted, both were winded and panting. Casey's smile still had a touch of overconfidence to it, but that was tempered by a look of pure happiness.

"Yep," Casey murmured, holding Don firmly, "I knew partnering up with you was a good idea."

Option 4 Capritello

Most of the lair was in darkness, save for the light that illuminated the pit area and its three occupants.

End of semester testing was due to begin the following week and both April and Casey were studying. They sat diagonally from each other on the large built-in, with Don seated just on the other side of April.

Don too was studying; fiercely consuming a scientific tome entitled "A Correlation of Cytological and Genetical Crossing-Over In Zea Mays" by Creighton and McClintock which April had procured for him from the public library.

Periodically Casey would look up to ask a question, which was swiftly answered by either April or Don; sometimes both. When April had questions, Don came to her rescue. Sometimes Don would excitedly call out a passage from his book, to which April would respond intelligently. Theirs was a very symbiotic study session.

All that Casey could glean was that the gist of Don's book had to do with chromosomes in some sort of plant. It made no sense to him why that subject would be so thrilling to the turtle, but he didn't care. Seeing Don's face light up with each new discovery reminded Casey why he found the genius to be so cute.

Likewise for the gentle care in April's expression when she spoke to either of them. She was pretty on the outside, a lot of girls were, but it was what was inside of April that made her special to Casey Jones.

Casey set his book down and stretched. It was getting late and the other four members of the household had already turned in for the night. Still, Casey was loathe to break up their little group. Lately he had begun to feel that the only time things were as they should be was when the three of them were together.

Fact was, Casey had a deep longing for the three of them to be even closer than they already were. Gone were the days where he and Don bickered and competed for April's attention. Her equal affection for both of them made Casey realize he wouldn't lose anything from her caring for Donatello.

It was through April's eyes that Casey had come to see Don in a new light as well. He wasn't all that different from April; gifted, strong, smart, stubborn – these were just a few of the things that Casey admired.

Casey had to admit that he found the turtle to be physically appealing too. He'd thought that odd at first but not alarming. Though he'd never been interested in another male before, Casey couldn't find a single good reason not to enjoy the attraction.

Finding that he was drawn to both Don and April left Casey in something of a quandary. Leaving the status quo as it was seemed like he had accepted placing his life in permanent limbo. Casey liked to think of himself as a man of action and there was no time like the present.

Setting his book aside with a thump, Casey lifted his arms high as he stretched, producing a prodigious yawn in the process. The finality with which he'd tossed down his book drew April's attention and his movements pulled Don's eyes up from his own reading.

"I think we've had our heads buried for long enough," Casey announced.

April sighed and closed her book on her notepaper, dropping it and her pencil on the ground near her feet. "I agree. My eyes are starting to cross."

Don looked slightly dismayed, glancing down at the page he'd been reading and then up again. Seeing both April and Casey looking expectantly at him had Don slowly closing the book and then sliding it across the cushions away from him.

"You guys aren't going to leave yet, are you?" Don asked, staring at them wistfully.

"Not yet," Casey answered hastily before April could say anything. "I thought we could talk about something first."

"What kind of something?" April asked, a tad suspiciously.

"Us," Casey said, looking from one to the other.

"Us?" Don repeated blankly.

Casey hopped up and crossed in front of April in order to plop down between her and Don. They had already been sitting fairly close so it was easy for Casey to slip an arm across each of their shoulders.

"Yeah, us. The mighty threesome, the three wonders of the world, the trifecta of awesome," Casey said glibly. "It's time everyone realizes we're a thing."

"Exactly what kind of 'thing' are you referring to?" April asked, twisting around to better face him, though she didn't try to dislodge his arm.

"The 'us' kind of thing," Casey said.

"It's a riddle, isn't it?" Don asked, very aware that Casey's fingers were stroking his skin and finding he wasn't unnerved by it.

"Nope," Casey said. "April belongs with you and me, you belong with me and April, and I belong with the two of you. We have to come up with a name for it though, 'cause 'couple' doesn't work."

"Are you talking . . . romance?" April asked, her eyes wide. She glanced over at Don to find that he too appeared somewhat stunned.

Casey looked up as though thinking deeply. "Maybe we'll refer to ourselves as a ménage à . . . ."

"No," Don interrupted him quickly, ignoring Casey's amused snort. "Triad sounds better."

"Oh, so now you're buying into Casey's little fantasy?" April demanded.

"Admit it, Red. You like the idea of being with both of us," Casey said. "I can't imagine life without you and Don. How about you, Donnie? Truth time."

Don's cheeks were burning as he stammered, "I . . . uh . . . y-yes . . . maybe that . . . that c-could w-work."

"Then let's seal the deal," Casey pronounced triumphantly. He suddenly tugged on both of them, pulling them close together so that they were leaning over his lap. "Kiss."

Casey was just so no nonsense about the whole thing that Don forgot his nervousness as he looked at April. For a second she appeared lost at the speed with which things were taking place, but then a small smile lifted the corners of her mouth.

Without further ado, April pressed her lips to Don's. It took him a second to respond, but then instinct kicked in and he deepened the kiss. When April responded enthusiastically, Don churred.

"Perfect," Casey drawled.

After a few minutes they separated and turned eagerly towards Casey. With a grin, he first kissed April thoroughly and then completely ravished Don's mouth.

"That's a good first step," Casey said happily when they were finished, keeping his arms around the pair as they tucked into his sides.

"You know, not all of your ideas are bad Jones," April murmured teasingly.

Don's hand slid across Casey's knee to meet up with April's, their fingers twining together and coming to rest on the boy's legs.

"Actually, I'd say this one had a certain amount of genius to it," Don declared blissfully.


End file.
